Sens look to repeat remarkable feat

The Senators haven’t given up hope of making the playoffs, but to do it again they’ll have to repeat their magic of a year ago.

While sportsclubstats.com gives the Senators, who extended their winning streak to three straight Saturday night, a slim 4.9%% chance of making the post-season with 22 games to go, that’s a little better than the 1.8% the club had a week ago in the midst of a three-game losing skid.

No, the Senators haven’t been perfect as they pack their bags for a pivotal three-game road trip through Western Canada, but as the old saying goes they’re finding ways to win and they’ll try to extend their winning streak to a season-high four games Tuesday night against the Edmonton Oilers.

If nothing else, the 3-2 comeback win over the Detroit Red Wings Saturday night to close out a three-game homestand gave them a boost of confidence .

“Confidence is one of those things that’s tricky,” said goaltender Craig Anderson, who made 29 stops in the win. “We have to understand mistakes do happen (and) whether you’re up a goal or down a goal, you’ve still got to make plays.

“I think our guys have done a terrific job the last few games and our goal is to get better.”

Sitting six points back of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who have two games in hand, for the final wild-card spot, the Senators are a long-shot to make the playoffs, but the reality is they’ve done this before and if they need any reminder all they have to do is look back at what they accomplished last spring.

This is essentially the same group that qualified for the playoffs on the final day of the season, so they can draw on whatever they learned.

“It’s about playing the way that gives you the best chance to win every game,” said coach Dave Cameron. “We’ve played mostly winnable games (in the last two weeks). That’s all you can do. When you’re coming from behind the eight-ball, there’s no margin for error, so it’s a little more intense.

“You just have to look at playing the way that gives your team the best chance to win and trying to do it for 60 minutes. You have to get on a roll and we’re on a bit of a roll right now.”

The Senators weren’t pretty but they were effective against the Wings because the club has tightened up defensively and is better in its zone. Yes, some of that has to do with the arrival of veteran defenceman Dion Phaneuf from the Toronto Maple Leafs because he’s stabilized the top four.

“We just need to find ways to get games to overtime and get points,” Anderson said. “I like the style we’re playing right now. It’s very conservative. We’re not run and gun right now. We’re playing consistent and together as a group and it’s getting us some wins. It’s shown some positive reinforcement for us.”

It wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest the club’s confidence may be at a season high because it’s the first time they’ve had three straight wins since mid-November. The Senators aren’t looking what’s ahead of them right now because that’s way too daunting at the moment.

A rough estimate indicates they’ll need 34 to 36 points down the stretch to have a chance of getting in the post-season and they have to rely on the teams ahead of them to falter the way the Boston Bruins did last year. Nothing is out of the realm of possibility, but it’s also a mountainous task.

“Right now, it’s one game at a time, one game at a time and that might sound cliche but it’s the truth,” said Phaneuf. “If you look at the big picture that’s … you just don’t. In pro sport, you don’t look at the big picture, you look at what’s your next obstacle and your next game.

“We prepare for that and then we go onto the next one. I hate to be cliche but it’s the truth. You’ve got to look at little goals and you’ve got to keep getting better.”

The Senators have made a step in the right direction but there’s lots of work is ahead.

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